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The markets had a downhill day, as did Krispy Kreme, whose shares closed to a 20% loss Tuesday afternoon. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The markets are seeing red across the board, from the S&P 500 to the struggling gold market. Is sentiment down on Fed fears or is this a preview of things to come in the new year? The answer could be a little bit of both.

Tuesday's close brought the third straight session of losses for the S&P, which closed over 5 points down at 1,795.15, a 0.32% drop. The Nasdaq and Dow didn't fare much better, with the Nasdaq closing over 8 points down for a 0.2% drop and the Dow finishing at 15,914.62, a 94-point (or 0.59%) drop. Also posting losses were the 10-year note, which closed with a 0.93% drop, and the ever-struggling gold market, which closed 0.02% down at 1221 points. In the trailing twelve months, gold has taken a 29% loss.

Some analysts told Reuters that investors might simply be locking in profits after eight weeks of gains, while other investors might be fearful of the Fed beginning to taper the stream of cash it's pumping into the economy. Yet another potential explanation for the markets' dip? It's a preview of what we'll see in 2014.

At a 2014 T. Rowe Price economic outlook event on Tuesday, John Linehan, head of U.S. equity, noted that 2013 was a rarity in regards to stock market performance, clocking in as one of the few years in the post-war era where we haven't seen a market correction more than 5%. In the economic outlook report accompanying the event, Linehan said that "moving forward, U.S. stocks are unlikely to match their recent strength. This bull market has lasted for 57 months so far, which is the average length of bull markets since 1930."

Linehan noted that when it comes to the stock market in 2014, what goes up must come down, and when it does come down, it's unlikely to be a recessionary turn but a downturn nonetheless. Tuesday's market activity could be a preview of the non-recessionary downturn to come.

Within Tuesday's shades of market red are a batch of stocks that had a particularly rocky day, and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts leads that group. Krispy Kreme reported an increase in its third quarter profit Monday evening but lowered its guidance for the upcoming fiscal year, and that lowered guidance (a full-year earnings range of 71 to 76 cents per share, down from 77 cents per share) sent the stock plunging in Tuesday's market activity. The doughnut maker opened to a $4 loss at $20.60 per share and was trading deep in the red throughout the day, eventually closing 20.2% down at $19.59 per share. Year-to-date, however, Tuesday's losses are just a blip in Krispy Kreme's radar, as the stock has gained over 150% since the start of 2013.

Shares of automakers Ford and GM didn't have the best of days, either. Despite reporting November sales growth shares of both car-makers finished in the red, with Ford posting a 4.19% loss and GM posting a 2.48% loss. For GM, this loss could be attributed to a higher inventory, which can cause concerns the longer it sits and ages compared to newer competition.

Tuesday wasn't entirely filled with bad news; in fact, for Tesla, it was a downright great day. After German regulators concluded there were no manufacturer-related defects with the Model S line, shares of Tesla stock surged, making the stock one of the biggest movers of the day. After opening at $132.68 per share Tuesday morning, Tesla's surge led it to a $144.70 close, for a total gain of over 16%. While news of Model S fires chipped away at Tesla stock over the past three months, the stock has nonetheless had a productive 2013, posting a year-to-date gain of over 250%.

Finally, the beleaguered also posted some good news late Tuesday afternoon: comparable store sales in November increased 10.1% year-over-year. JC Penney CEO Mike Ullman said in a statement that he is encouraged by the retailer's performance over Black Friday weekend and that in-store and online traffic and conversion "was exciting for everyone across our organization." He added, "We know the environment will remain as competitive as ever, and we are all working to maintain our momentum through the holiday season." After closing at $10.11, shares of JC Penney -- which were recently booted out of the S&P 500 and into the S&P Midcap 400 -- were trading for a near-5% gain in after market activity following the news.